Beth, great write up on the the 559 perspective. Thanks for taking the time to do it!
On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 5:50 PM, beth h <periwinkle...@yahoo.com> wrote: > Steve said: > > >>I suppose nobody cares that much about 559. > > Au contraire. > > The number of real-world bike shops (i.e., those that focus on mass- > produced bicycles retailing for under $1,000) doing a roaring business > in 650b is VERY low. 650b, while it offers a lovely ride and a great > in-between wheel size that certainly fits a niche, is more likely to > be found through custom builders, and from mail-order houses > specializing in outfitting those custom frames. > > At our shop, we do carry 650b rims and tires. We probably get asked to > build custom wheels in that size four or five times a year; and we've > sold exactly ten 650b tires to customers in the last 6 months. > We also carry 26"/559 wheels, rims and tubes. We sell them by the > hundreds. > > The largest number of bikes I've ever seen with 650b wheels -- about > twelve of them -- were all in one room at the recent Oregon Manifest > bike show. All of those gorgeous bikes were custom built. Some were > available for sale and among those the cheapest one sold for around > $4,000. The winning bike at the show is currently for sale, for a cool > six grand. While these bikes represent some fantastic -- and even, in > many cases, truly sensible -- ideas in bicycle design, I do not > consider them to be real world bikes. > > I consider a real-world bike to be a mass-produced, LBS-quality bike > that would retail for between $400 and $1000 complete. That is a bike > that the majority of hourly-wage workers in this country can afford, > even if they have to save up for it for several months (as a number of > our customers have had to do). > Based on that criteriae, there is not yet a real-world bike on the > market that is built around 650b wheels. > That's not to say it won't happen. I certainly could happen. But in > order for it to happen, 650b proponents would have to be willing to > accept a lower common standard in order to make the bike accessible to > many more people. > > At present, 650b is still being sold on its performance, and in no > small part its hip, French coolness. > As an individual who loves hand-built bikes and beautiful components > that perform beautifully, I GET cool, I actually DIG cool and in fact > I am blessed enough to be able to RIDE cool to work every day. > But as a bicycle salesperson it is very hard for me to sell that kind > of cool to someone who rides daily for transportation, works in a > dicey neighborhood and has to lock their bike to the gas meter in an > apartment building basement every night. That level of cool is simply > too expensive to buy, and to risk, at the present time. > > For my money, THE way to go for real-world bikes IS 26"/559. The wheel > size has been around for ages, offers zillions of tread choices and > price ranges, and can be cobbled together with a used frame and parts > to provide a VERY servicable, extremely rideable bike at a price that > an hourly wage worker can handle. > > I love -- no, I ADORE -- the 26"/559 wheel size and I am sure I'm not > alone. That is why I worried when I heard that the Atlantis might go > away. The Atlantis is an absolute wet dream of a 559-dedicated bike > and it should live forever. I hope it will. > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com<rbw-owners-bunch%2bunsubscr...@googlegroups.com> > . > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > > > -- Cheers, David Redlands, CA "Bicycling is a big part of the future. It has to be. There is something wrong with a society that drives a car to workout in a gym." ~Bill Nye, scientist guy -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
